Microsoft halts sales of Band fitness trackers, says no new model in 2016

Microsoft has pulled its Band fitness trackers from its online store, and confirmed that it won't have a new model out in 2016, suggesting that the company is rethinking its approach to a wearables market largely dominated by Fitbit and Apple.

"We have sold through our existing Band 2 inventory and have no plans to release another Band device this year," a spokesperson toldZDNet, adding that the company still intends to support Band 2 owners and the Microsoft Health platform for Windows, iOS, and Android. It has also removed the Band SDK from its developer downloads though, effectively ending any third-party app support.

Sources for ZDNet claimed that Microsoft isn't going to ship a Band 3 in the near future, and is in fact planning to phase out its trackers entirely.

The Band has never made a significant dent in the fitness market, despite having Microsoft's weight behind it and a major redesign in Oct. 2015.

The company likely isn't abandoning wearables entirely, given the growing importance of the market. At the very least it's still working on the HoloLens, an augmented reality wearable. Apple is known to be working on AR technology as well, though it doesn't have any announced products and might not for years.